Andrew Lemoncello will be dropping the 'Lemon' from his name after he decided it was necessary "in order to be taken more seriously". In an extraordinary interview with the Lufbra Echo, Britain's latest marathon star also slammed what he called "virtually non-existent" support on the London Marathon course. "What were they playing at?" fumed the Scot, "it was like I was alone out there. I am certain that I would have won [Lemoncello came 8th] if they had cheered for me. It was very poor."
When asked to elaborate on his name decision, the American based star said, "I am tired of being associated with citrus fruit. The organizers of major events always insist on giving me lemonade to drink". The former steeplechaser also confirmed that he would not be signing a potentially lucrative deal with Sprite. "It's not for me," he said as he left London this morning, "I just think that no one thinks of me as a serious athlete because I have such a stupid name." Lemoncello went on to blame a "naive" decision to ditch his sunglasses hours before the start of the marathon on Sunday. "I really struggled with that one," revealed the 2:13 marathoner, "I bought them at Sunglass Hut on the way over and they are so cool- I am sure it [the lack of them] slowed me down, maybe by up to three or four minutes."
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The Marathon World Record holder, Paula Radcliffe has courted high praise for her "sensationally bland" commentary at the recent London Marathon. BBC chiefs are said to be "thrilled" with her progress as she managed to last nearly three hours without making one useful point. "It's a difficult thing to master and I know that Steve Cram really struggled with it," said a BBC insider, "commentators have to talk utter nonsense otherwise viewers may start to realize that they are tuned in and switch off". The praise comes after Radcliffe was heavily criticized for her performance at the Winter Olympics. Viewers were said to be "aghast" at her attempts to make coherent sense when covering the Curling. One viewer said, "her voice is perfect to lull us to sleep. When she tries all that intelligent stuff it just isn't on".
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